The Heart of the Matter
by LauraGarthwait
Summary: a/u fun-upbeat-love story revolving around our favorite couple. Tara's the daughter of Andrew, the devil's tribe VP, she doesn't meet Jax until she's hired as the chief of surgery at St Thomas
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's note: I hope you all enjoy this story. It popped into my head so I decided to write it before I forgot about it. It's more fun and upbeat than my other drama filled ones so I think it's going to be really fun to write. I'm working on the next chapters of my other two so for those that are following those, the updates are coming! Thank you for reading and as always reviews are appreciated!**_

 **SAINT THOMAS HOSPITAL WELCOMES TARA KNOWLES, M.D. TO IT'S STAFF AS THE NEW CHIEF OF PEDIATRIC SURGERY.**

Tara frowned at the picture under the headline. They could have picked a more flattering photo of her, this one made her look to skinny and extremely pale. She looked sickly.

Her parents bought every newspaper they could get their hands on to send to distant relatives and friends, they were always her biggest supporters. Everyone else assumed she would follow in the footsteps of her parents, no one thought she would leave Nevada and become a surgeon and surely not the Chief of surgery.

Tara's dad, Andrew was the Vice President of the Devil's Tribe. He and his best friend started the club back in the sixties. Her mom, Grace had embraced the club with open arms when she met Andrew. He and Jury were just getting started when her mom came into the picture. They were a family. Jury was more like Tara's Uncle than her dad's real brothers.

Tara had always strived for excellence, even at a young age. She maintained straight A's since elementary all through school. She even had perfect attendance every year except one since kindergarten and that's when she had the flu and had to miss three days. She was smart, she graduated at the top of her class. Some said that it wasn't to impressive since her graduating class was only 35 people, but to her parents it was the best thing in the world. Her class would have been a lot bigger but there were a lot of drop outs, boys wanting to prospect and girls wanting to be there for the members in anyway they could.

Tara had heard the whispers all growing up, she heard people say how pretty she was and how she was going to make a good old lady. She also heard the people who weren't fond of the club saying it wouldn't be long before she would follow in her mother's footsteps, she would give up her life to take on the man and his club. She refused to be another statistic, those rumors only made her work that much harder.

All of her hard work had finally paid off, she was standing in her new house in Charming, California. She had several job openings but her father had persuaded her to take this one. He said it was because Charming was a lot closer to home than all of those other places but she had a feeling it had more to do with the fact that Uncle Jury was close to the MC in Charming. He had even came out with them to help her get settled and introduce her to the club just in case she should ever need them for anything.

She was taking everything in. Her new town, her new house. It was beautiful. A small two bedroom cream-colored house on the outskirts of town. It had enough room for her parents to come visit but was small enough she didn't spend her time off trying to keep it clean. It was perfect.

She liked the atmosphere of the town too. The people she has seen in passing seem real friendly, the name seemed to fit the town perfectly. She had a feeling she was really going to like this place.

They arrived at a place called TM, the lot was full of people in kuttes. This felt like home to her.

Her mom and dad exchanged greetings with some of the people, Tara couldn't remember meeting any of them. Her mom told her that she had but it was back when she was three so there was no memory of it.

"Gemma, this is my baby Tara." Grace announced proudly with her arm wrapped around Tara's shoulder.

"Oh my look how pretty she is baby." Gemma got JT's attention who was laughing with Jury, Andrew, and Piney.

"Yeah, you have a beautiful girl, Drew. How are you not in prison for killing all of those boys who come calling?" JT laughed.

"I've got 'em buried in the basement." Andrew winked at her. "I need you all to look after her for me. She's my pride and joy, big time surgeon over at ST. Thomas now." He glowed with pride staring at her.

"Chief of Pediatric Surgery." Grace added, hugging Tara into her side.

"Wow. That's great. Congratulations sweetheart." Gemma hugged her too. Tara felt a little ackward getting all of this attention from .

"We will take care of her, Grace don't you worry. You all are practically family and we always take care of our family." Gemma looped her arm through JT's.

"You got that right." JT agreed. "She's in good hands don't you worry."

"Come here boys." Piney yelled to the two bikers that just entered the lot.

"Opie, Jax, Tommy, meet Tara Knowles. She's Andrew's girl." Piney announced.

Tara's eyes met the most beautiful pair of blue eyes she had seen in her life.

"Nice to meet you all." She looked at each one of them, her eyes darting back to those beautiful eyes again.

"Hey darlin', I'm Jax. It's nice to meet you too." He stepped forward, holding out his hand to her.

The moment she stuck her hand in his it was like electricity. She had never felt anything like it before, she pulled her hand back and shook her head to clear her thoughts. She noticed he had the same expression as her, she wondered if he felt it too.

"I'm Opie, nice to meet you." The taller one simply nodded.

"I'm Tommy." The smallest one in the group stepped forward holding out a hand to her. "You're beautiful." He blushed as if he hadn't meant to say that out loud.

"Thank you. You're very sweet." She replied, her eyes darting back to Jax's before turning back to Tommy. "You two kind of look alike, are you brothers?" She asked.

"Good eye, darlin'." Jax crooned.

"Boys, go help Tara unpack her boxes from the U-haul at her place while we catch up with Uncle Jury, Drew, and Grace." JT ordered, chuckling at his boys. This could get very interesting.

"Lead the way darlin'." Jax stated, smiling down at her.

"Well, I'll need a ride back to my place. Which one of you would like to help me out with that?" She smiled innocently.

"Hop on." Jax patted the seat of his bike.

"You could ride with me, Jax tends to drive fast. I don't want it to scare you." Tommy offered her his helmet.

Tara chuckled, "You're so sweet." She took the helmet from him.

"You don't wanna ride with Tommy, I'll go easy darlin'. Promise." Jax held out his hand to her.

"What if I don't like it easy?" She stood up on her toes and whispered in his ear, laughing when his mouth dropped open.

"I think I can help you out with that too." He leaned in closer to her. "You just say the word."

"Careful Jax, I might just take you up on that." She winked.

"Tommy, I need you to go help Chibs with that repo on Miller Street." JT called out. He could already see where this was going to go and didn't want his youngest son heartbroken.

"Pop, I was going to help Tara." Tommy protested.

"It's okay, you can come help later if we don't have it all unpacked." Tara offered.

"I guess that settles it then," Jax chuckled handing her his helmet. "climb on darlin."

She leaned in close and wrapped her arms securely around him. She was enjoying every moment of being that close to him, she inhaled his scent. He smelled amazing, she wasn't sure what type of cologne he wore but mixed with oil and his sweat.

Jax and Opie had helped her unload all of the boxes in her house.

"I need to get all of this stuff put away so I'm not going to come back to TM, I think I'll just order a pizza. Thank you for all of your help though. I really appreciate it guys." She leaned against the wall, staring in Jax's eyes.

"Anytime. I need to get back though, Donna will be off work soon." Opie walked to the door. "You coming brotha?"

"Nah, I think pizza sounds good." Jax smirked. "That is if you don't mind the company?"

She nodded. "Of course, it's the least I could do after you spent an hour carrying boxes."

"I'll catch ya later." Op waved leaving the two of them alone.

The energy in the room was intense. It was like a magnet drawing them closer to each other.

"So about what you said earlier?" Jax stepped up to her, his body just inches from her.

"...and what was that?" She purred.

"Something about you not liking it easy?" Jax inched closer to her, his body almost flush against hers now.

She ran her tongue over her lips seductively. "...Yeah, I don't. I don't normally do this either though." She was breathing heavily, fighting the urge to pull him to her, rip his clothes off, and have him right there on her livingroom floor.

"Do what?" He whispered.

"This." She gestured between the two of them. "I'm not the kind of girl that jumps into bed with someone she barely knows."

"Oh darlin' if I have a say in the matter you're going to know me very well." He placed his forehead against hers and placed in hand on the small of her back pulling her lower body forward against his erection pushing through his jeans.

"Yeah." She took a deep breath again, she wanted this and she wanted him very badly but she just couldn't. She didn't want him to think she was just another slut wanting the old lady mark. "This will have to wait until that time." She side stepped out of his grasp.

"Are you sure? We could do this now?" He leaned against the wall, trying to hide his disappointment.

"I'm sure. I mean I want this, don't think I don't. I just want to get to know you first. I want to.." She paused, the look he gave her sent a tingling sensation all through her body. She grabbed the back of his head, attacking his mouth with hers. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He had her clothes off in minutes, taking her breast into his mouth. He sat her down but sunk his fingers into her wetness. She threw her head back, moaning loudly.

"I, I'm sorry." They both froze momentarily, seeing Tommy's back retreat out the door.

"Shit." Jax threw on his pants. He knew his brother was going to be upset, he could tell by the way he acted at TM that he was into her.

"Bro wait up." Jax called after him.

Tara felt horrible, she could hear Tommy screaming at Jax.

"How could you? You knew I liked her. You can have any girl here you want, hell you do have any girl here you want. Why this one? You fuck a new girl every night, you don't need her too!"

"Bro, I'm sorry. It just happened." Jax said quietly, almost to quietly for Tara to hear.

"It just happened. Bullshit. You just needed a new conquest because the ones here are getting old. You have to sink your dick into every new pussy that comes into town and normally I don't care but I liked her! Of course, she liked you though, they all like you. They fall for your darlin shit you spit out and think you really care for them but you don't. You don't care about anyone but yourself." Tommy was still shouting.

"I'm sorry bro." Jax stated again. "You're wrong.."

"That's all this was? A new conquest for you." Tara interrupted him. She was seething.

"No." Jax turned to her, "It's not like that."

"Bullshit, it's always like that. You have fucked nearly every girl in this town, you're known as the lady killer for fuck's sake. You're gonna try to claim that this girl that you just met today changed all of that? I call bullshit. You're Jax Teller, Prince of Charming, the king of hit it and quit it pussy. " Tommy's voice was quieter but full of rage.

"...and you I guess I was wrong about you. I thought when I first saw you that you were different. You're smart, you work on kids, but you fell for him after only a few hours and dropped your pants for him so I guess you're no better than all of the other crow-eaters." Tommy hopped on his bike and sped off before either of them could reply.

Tara sat on her steps, her head in her hands. "He's right." She finally said.

"No, he's not. I can't explain what this is, Tara. It's nothing I've ever experienced, it's like a magnet pulling me to you. You're not like those girls, even after today I want to get to know you. I want to know everything about you." He knelt down in front of her rubbing her knee.

"Yeah, probably because you didn't finish your conquest after that you'll be gone." She glared at him.

"You're wrong and I will prove that to you darlin." He stated, he stood up and stared at her. She stared at the ground, the anger that was flowing through her body was disappearing. She had no right to be mad at him, she was angry at herself for allowing this to happen. She hated that Tommy was upset but she couldn't deny the feelings she had for Jax.

"I guess we'll see then." She waved giving him a small smile.

"We will." He watched her go into the house, he would have to go home and jack off after this and he would have to make ammends with his brother but he wouldn't regret this, not today, not ever.

Tara leaned against her door sighing. Part of her wished he would come back in here, pick her up and fuck her into next week but the rational part of her knew this was wrong. It wasn't like her to drop her panties for random guys, she was the sensible one all through high school and college. She was 19 when she lost her virginity, when all of her friends were in their early teens. She had plenty of opportunity just like them, she just never felt this kind of pull. This was something new all together. She hadn't even felt like this with Wade and she was almost ready to marry him until she caught him in bed with his ex girlfriend.

She was curious to see what happened next, she was almost certain he would just disappear and move on to the next girl who didn't give a damn if he cared about her or not, just wanting his attention.

"I heard there was quite a ruckus here today with Jax and Tommy." Grace approached her daughter.

"You heard about that? Already? Ugh who else knows?" Tara was mortified, she never dreamed word would get out this quickly.

"Everyone at TM," Grace smirked at the grimace Tara was now sporting. "We all saw it actually. They were still going at it right there in the lot."

"Great." Tara groaned.

"You're smarter than this baby. You've made it to far to throw it away for some cute dick." Grace had always been outspoken, a trait that Tara had also picked up.

"I'm not throwing anything away, momma. Yes, he's cute and yes there's something about him that I can't seem to shake but it's only been a day. I'm sure everything will be fine, I hate that Tommy was upset though." Tara dropped her head to hands.

"Yes, it's been only a day. Only a few hours actually but from what we all heard you already were naked with him and that's not you. That's what worries me sweetheart, you're smart and you're cautious but this boy has you changing your ways in just a matter of hours." Grace rubbed Tara's hair.

"I know. There's something about him, he's different than anyone I've ever known."

"Is he?" Grace was shaking her head. "From the sound of it he's exactly what you're used to. Be careful. Don't let him hurt you like that piece of shit, Wade." Grace held Tara's shoulders looking her in the eye. "You could always try friends with benefits, I've heard that works for people who can't be in a committed relationship but can't be away from each other either." She chuckled when Tara stiffened.

"Mom, I love you but I really don't want to have this conversation right now." Tara shook her head.

"I'm just saying he's cute, he's your type, you're young, if you want to bang his brains out then go for it just be careful with your body, mind, but most importantly your heart." Grace laughed again at her daughter's shocked expression. She was being extremely blunt, the alcohol was probably to blame.

"Okay, I think you're drunk." Tara laughed. Her and her mother were extremely close, Tara loved her more than anything but this was not a conversation she wanted to be having with her right now, probably not ever.


	2. Chapter 2

Tara went for a walk to clear her head and enjoy the night breeze. It had been an exciting day. She was antsy. Her lady business was screaming at her to go find Jax Teller and let him have his way with her but after everything that happened with Tommy she knew that wasn't a good idea. She did not want to be the drama between the brothers, she wasn't that girl, as much as she wanted to be right now.

She heard a motorcycle coming her way and felt her heart beat faster, the excitement was building at the anticipation of looking into his blue eyes.

"Hey Tara." Tommy greeted. She hid her disappointment behind a smile.

"Hey Tommy. I'm really sorry about earlier…"

"No. I'm sorry. I was a jerk. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did. I just wanted to apologize. I like you Tara. I think that's obvious but it's also clear that you're not into me like that."

He was apologizing to her? This was very unexpected. "Thanks Tommy." She stated lamely. She felt stupid but it's all she could think of to say.

"So Jax huh?" He raised his eyebrows at her.

"I don't know. It just sort-of happened." She sighed.

"Look Jax is a good guy, he's been my hero since well forever. You guys will be good together."

Tara narrowed her eyes at him, confusion sweeping over her. "What about that I was stupid just like all of the other girls?"

"All of what I said was true except for one thing. My brother really likes you. He's never really liked anyone. It's always been a fuck 'em and leave 'em. If they didn't give them what he wanted when he wanted it he would bail and move on to the next one who would." Tommy paused taking a breath.

"That's reassuring." She rolled her eyes up at the sky.

"It's different with you though. You didn't give him what he wanted and yet he's not hooking up with random crow-eaters back at the clubhouse either. He's turning them all down and I can only assume that it's because of you." Tommy confessed.

"I doubt that." Tara muttered. "Thanks Tommy, I'll see you around okay?" She waved before walking back home. She couldn't deny the bubble of hope she felt at his words. She debated over and over about going to the clubhouse and ending her sexual frustration that's been more prominent than ever since she first laid eyes on the handsome blonde, blue-eyed, biker.

Her better judgement won the internal battle against her desire. Right now she was to tired to play games with him. She would sleep on it and make a decision in the morning on how far she was willing to let this go.

" _You are beautiful. I want you. Now." Jax pushed her gently up against her bedroom wall. He ripped her clothes off of her and pinned her hands above her head with one hand using his other hand to caress her skin._

" _You have me. What are you going to do with me?" She whispered into the air._

" _Everything." He growled huskily. He picked her up and laid her on her bed trailing kisses down her body and stopped between her thighs. He flicked his tongue against her causing her to cry out in pleasure._

" _You taste so damn good." He murmured._

" _How about you give me something a little bit harder then?" She bit back her smile when he groaned at her words._

" _Anything for you babe." He eased himself into her, allowing her body time to adjust to his size. He started moving harder and faster and she knew she was close to reaching her orgasm…_

"Tara? Honey are you okay?" Tara's eyes flew open to see her mom standing above her, shaking her shoulder. Her eyes scanned the room, realizing she was only dreaming.

"I'm fine." She groaned suddenly wishing she was still dreaming of Jax.

"Just checking, you made some weird sounds…." Her mom grinned and walked out of the room.

As much as she tried she couldn't get back to sleep. It was 4:30 a.m. and her thoughts were instantly on Jax. She wondered if he was asleep or even alone for that matter.

She shook the thought of him with someone else out of her head. He was Jax Teller, she had a suspicion he would always have a someone else, despite what Tommy had said earlier.

She sent him a text just to see if he was awake. " _Hey it's Tara. Just thought I'd see if you wanted to hang out later today?"_

She didn't really expect an answer. It was early morning after all so she placed her phone back on her night stand and laid back down.

She heard her a knock on her window. She jumped out of bed and peeked out. She smiled and opened the window. "What are you doing here?" She whispered.

"You said you wanted to hang out…"

"I also said later today. A little impatient are we?" She chuckled.

"Maybe." He climbed through. "I missed you." He winked.

"Ahh not enough company at the clubhouse?" She questioned in a playful tone.

"None I was interested in." He winked at her. "So what did you want to do?"

Her cheeks flushed red. "Well I hadn't had a chance to plan anything."

"I like spontaneous." He pulled her against him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Me too."

He kissed her and lowered her onto the bed. "Is this what you want?" He questioned. She could hear the hope in his voice that she didn't reject him once again.

"Yes." She whispered.

That was all he needed. He had her out of her clothes and laying back on the bed quicker than she ever thought possible.

She laid back against the pillows while he kissed every inch of her body. Her dream was nowhere near this satisfying. He had brought her to an orgasm with just his tongue so she flipped him over and decided to repay the favor. She had never wanted to give a guy a blowjob before. It just seemed disgusting to her but with Jax she couldn't wait to taste him.

She took him into her mouth. He was unraveling underneath her and she felt extremely proud of herself.

"Wow." He cried out after he exploded into her mouth. "That felt amazing baby."

She winked at him before walking naked into her bathroom to wash herself off and brush her teeth.

She climbed in bed beside him. "Come here." He pulled her into his chest and held her tight.

"You done already." She chuckled.

"No. I just wasn't sure if you wanted to go any farther. I don't want to push you babe." He said sincerely.

"Oh. Well. You see my body is still wanting more. Your tongue is amazing, but I really want to feel this inside me." She took him into her hands again, gently stroking him.

"MMMMM…" He moaned out. "I think I can manage that."

He pulled her on top of him guiding her hips down onto his erection. She slid up and down slowly riding him watching the intense pleasure on his face. He put his hand on the back of her neck pulling her mouth down to his kissing her passionately. She started moving faster and harder against him. He massaged her breasts and she threw her head back, a moan escaping her lips. He flipped her over, held her legs on his shoulders. "Hard?" He breathed heavily. She nodded. He slammed himself into her repeatedly. Both of their orgasms coming shortly after his assault on her. He fell down on to the bed and held her tight.

They held each other in silence, neither felt the need to ruin the moment with unnecessary words. They fell asleep snuggled together.

"Wake up kids. Tara your dad and I are leaving today." Tara heard her mom shut her bedroom door laughing.

"Kids?" She muttered to herself then realized she was laying here naked with Jax. "Great." She groaned.

"Wake up." She shook him. "Apparently my mom saw us naked." She rolled her eyes and her cheeks were flushed.

"Relax darlin." He mumbled sleepily.

"STOP. CALLING. ME. DARLIN." She growled.

"Sorry. Relax baby. Love of my life. That better?" He smirked.

"Asshole." She rolled her eyes again. She threw on her clothes and went to do damage control.

"Mom. You can't just bust into my room. I'm not a teenager anymore." Tara snapped.

"Oh I was confused for a moment. I remember quite a few times in your teenage years I found you in the same situation." Her mom laughed.

"I had a feeling you were a bad girl." Jax emerged in the kitchen. "Good morning Grace, Andrew." He nodded at both of them before kissing Tara's cheek. "Good morning beautiful."

"Jax." Her parents greeted. Drew had narrowed his eyes at them.

"I've got to be getting back home. I'll see you later. Okay?" He kissed her softly.

"Baby? What's going on here?" Drew asked when Jax left.

"What?" Tara asked, innocently.

"I thought you wanted more than this." He said using his no-nonsense tone that he used when she was in major trouble in her childhood.

"I'm a little tired daddy. So can you stop speaking in riddles. You thought I wanted more than what?" She took the cup of coffee her mom held out to her and sipped it slowly.

"More than being a biker's old lady." He stated. He never took his eyes off her. She wasn't even sure he was blinking.

"Dad, don't worry. Your dream of me becoming more than an old lady has already happened. I'm a surgeon, the head surgeon in the Pediatrics field. I've already became more than just an old lady. I really do like him though. Maybe I can have both, my career and be an old lady." Tara sighed.

"You're old enough to make your own decisions but I think you need to think things through a little more carefully and a little less with your hormones. Jax Teller is a player. He's not the settle down type baby. You're better than a door-mat used to service him when he pleases. You need to find yourself a doctor, someone outside of this life."

"Maybe I don't. Maybe I'm not looking for anything serious from anyone. Maybe I'm just looking for a friends with benefits relationship with Jax." She couldn't believe she just said that out loud to her dad no less but it slipped out before she could stop it.

"Friends with Benefits? You mean you sleep with him when one of you feels the need but he's free to jump into whatever pussy he wants?" He asked in disbelief.

She gulped but nodded in response.

"I thought I raised you better than that. You want men to respect you then you have to respect yourself. If you let him fuck whoever he wants whenever he wants then to him you're no better than those crow-eaters at the clubhouse."

Her mouth dropped open in response. "So you're saying I'm a slut?"

"I'm saying use your head. Don't be like those girls you despised so much in high school. You're smart baby. Smarter than this. Start acting like it. I love you." He kissed her forehead.

"Whatever you decide to do, be careful. Ultimately only you can decide what you want to do with your life. You have to decide how you want people to look at you, what they'll remember about you." Grace replied.

"Really? It was you just last night who mentioned me having a friends with benefits relationship with him and now you're siding with dad." Tara rolled her eyes.

"I'm not saying don't. I'm saying only you can decide what your heart can handle. Honestly, I don't think it can handle just being friends with him. I know you baby. You're going to want more and if you give him the free pussy card then that's all it'll ever be. Just be careful. That's what I'm saying."

"Okay." Tara agreed. She knew her mom was right. There was no way in hell she'd be able to have that sort of relationship with him. Last night they weren't in any type of relationship and she still wondered what slut he was with before he got to her.

"Gemma's having a little party for us at the clubhouse in an hour. Hurry and get dressed." Grace left Tara to her thoughts.

Tara was expecting a little party but the clubhouse was full of people. She should have known. These clubs don't do anything "little."

Someone ran into her wrapping their arms tightly around her.

"Tara!" Sara exclaimed. Sara and Tara had been best friends for as long as they both could remember.

"HEY!" Tara pulled her friend in for a hug. "What are you doing here?" She was glad to see her but concerned.

"Well…I missed you. I thought maybe if you didn't mind to much I could crash at your place and find a job here somewhere." Sara bit her lip.

"Of course you can stay with me, but what about Dillon?"

Sara turned and lifted her shirt up to show the bruises on her back. "Dillon and I are finished."

Tara saw red. She never liked him. He was Wade's best friend but she always thought he was a possessive asshole. "He did that to you?"

"Yes. It's been handled though so chill. My brother kicked his ass pretty good. I just needed to get a way. A fresh start like you did buddy."

"Okay well you can stay with me as long as you want you know that." Tara hugged her again. She was so happy to see her.

"Good. Oh and Wade's been asking about you. He's called four times over the past few days trying to get your phone number telling me how much he loves you and misses you and all that bullshit." Sara rolled her eyes. Wade was a cheating bastard who never deserved Tara.

"Maybe you should change your number so he can't contact you anymore." Tara suggested. "I definitely have nothing to say to him."

"Yeah. I'm so done with both of those guys. They're both pricks, guess that's why they get along so well." Sara giggled. "Who is that hot piece of ass right there?"

Tara looked in the direction that Sara was pointing praying she wasn't talking about Jax.

"That's Tommy Teller." Tara answered, breathing a sigh of relief that it wasn't her man her best friend was interested in.

"You know him? Introduce me?" Sara purred.

"Tommy's a nice guy, Sara. Don't string him along if you aren't really interested okay. I really don't want to see him hurt." Tara stated sternly.

"I won't best friend. Introduce me, please."

"Tommy." Tara called out to him and he jogged over to where they were standing. "This is my best friend Sara. She's moving in with me and I thought she could use a friend to hang out with while I go get some stuff set up at work in a little bit. You interested?" Tara asked him.

"Hell yeah. I mean sure." He blushed a little.

He wasn't as smooth of a talker as his brother but he was sweet. She had a good feeling about the two of them if it even goes that far.

"Good." Tara smiled at the two of them who seemed lost in their own little world already. She excused herself not wanting to be a third wheel in that conversation.

She sat down at one of the picnic tables and looked around the lot. There were tons of people including the crow-eaters who didn't know what clothes were but she didn't see Jax anywhere. She let her mind get the better of her she could picture him in one of those back rooms screwing around with someone else and it made her sick to her stomach. She knew at that moment she could never do this with him, not unless he was all in. Her parents were right she wasn't that type of girl.

"Tommy where's Jax?" She hated to interrupt their conversation but she needed to know.

"I think he's back in his apartment." Tommy replied.

"Alone?" She questioned.

"I don't think so." Tommy answered, not taking his eyes off of Sara this time.

That was it. That's all she needed to know. He was with her just a few hours ago and now with someone else.

She grabbed a pool stick at an empty table and started shooting the balls in the pocket.

"Hey there cutie. Want some company?" A guy asked and patted her ass while she was leaned over the table.

"Why not." She replied.

He smiled in response and licked his lips. "Still your shot." He replied. "Here do it like this." He leaned over behind her she could feel his erection pushing against her.

"I think I got it." She answered, rolling her eyes.

"Let me show you sexy."

"I think the lady said she had it, Kozik." Tara was startled by Jax's shouting. "Now back the fuck up off my girl."

"Your girl? Hey man. I didn't know." Kozik was backing away from him his hands held up in surrender.

"Now you do. Don't let it happen again."

All eyes were on them.

"You okay Tara?" Tommy and Sara ran up to her.

"Yeah. I'm fine. What the hell was that?" She turned her glare to Jax.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"I'm not your girl. You fuck me less than 12 hours ago and then are in here with some random slut? That's not the life for me, Jackson Teller. You can go play your games with someone else." She turned back to her game.

"What the fuck are you talking about? I've only been with you since you got here." He hissed.

"Really? Then where have you been? I've been here for about an hour and Tommy said you were in your apartment…not alone."

"You said what?" Jax turned to Tommy.

"Hey I didn't say he wasn't alone." Tommy stated.

"I asked if he was alone and you said I don't think so."

"I didn't hear you ask me that. I was talking to her." Tommy sighed and Sara giggled.

"What the hell is so funny?" Tara asked her.

"You and Him." Sara laughed harder. "It's so obvious you two are nuts about each other but neither of you seem to know it."

"Sorry Tommy." Tara apologized for dragging him into her misunderstanding.

"It's cool." He replied pulling Sara away so Tara and Jax could have a moment alone.

"Can we talk?" Jax asked, pulling her into his apartment after she agreed.

"You have to trust me, babe." Jax stated when the door closed.

"Trust is earned. I don't really even know you."

"And have I given you a reason not to trust me?" He asked.

"…No." She closed her eyes, she felt so embarrassed for her reaction.

"Then trust me and I promise I won't give you a reason not to." He held her in his arms.

"Tell me what you want from me?" She asked. Her voice breaking. She wasn't sure if she was ready for whatever he had to say.

"Just your trust babe, that's all I want."

"No. I mean do you just want a friends with benefits relationship or an exclusive just me and you relationship…what do you want? I need to know."

Jax sighed. He hadn't been ready for this conversation. He had never been a one-woman kind of man. He never even thought about that sort of relationship until now.

"I want you to be my girlfriend, Tara. You've grown up in this life, you know how it works. You're the only girl who's ever had me wanting something more from a relationship so I have to give it a shot. I'm willing to try if you are." He explained and was caught off guard when she jumped into his arms attacking his mouth with hers.

"Good answer." She whispered. "I'm in. I'm all in."

"So that means I can move in?" He chuckled when she raised her eyebrows at him.

"Not so fast, Teller." She smirked.

"Well I figure I'm going to be spending the nights there that you aren't at the hospital so I might as well just move in."

"We'll see how everything plays out first besides I've already got a roommate." She winked at him laughing at the who the hell is it expression. "Sara, the girl who laughed at us out there. She's my best friend has been since forever and she's moving in with me. Her and Tommy seem to be hitting it off nicely."

"Ah. I saw that but didn't know who she was. That's cool. I'll play this your way. I have a feeling though you'll be begging me to move in by next week. You know you're gonna want this dick at your beck and call." He rubbed her hand over his erection pushing against his jeans.

She laughed. "You may be right but right now I've got to go spend some time with my parents before they leave." She chuckled again at his "please fuck me now" expression.

"Later baby." She winked and walked back out the door.

"What took you so long?" She smirked when he finally emerged from his apartment.

"Oh I was jerking off to that naked picture of you I snapped this morning while you were sleeping." He whispered in her ear.

"You did not."

"Oh I did." He flipped his phone open and pulled up the picture of her making sure only she saw it.

"Jackson Teller." She groaned. "You…You.. bad boy." She shrugged. It was all she could come up with. Truth be told the thought of him stroking himself to one of her pictures was kind of hot and she was definitely turned on.

"Damn right baby." He grinned.

Tara didn't know what was going to happen between them. Being the girlfriend of Jackson Teller would come with a lot of drama. There would be tons of girls she would have to put in their place for messing with her man. She could see herself becoming his old lady and having her career. At this moment these two things were all she wanted. She always worked hard to get what she wanted so the little bitch's that think she's temporary need to back off because she will fight for what's hers. She grew up in this life, she knew how it worked and knew how to handle her business.


	3. Chapter 3---AUTHOR'S NOTE

_**Author's Note: I wanted to take a minute to answer the PM's and Reviews I've received asking when my stories will be updated.**_

 _ **My grandmother was placed on hospice, we were told she would only be with us a few more months-if that-so I decided to take a step back from writing and spend as much time with her as I can. I don't know how much longer she has left, but she's declining rapidly so this time with her is very important to me.**_

 _ **I will update my stories as soon as I can but have no time-frame at this time. I'm sorry that I left some of you wondering and waiting for the next update. I had posted a general announcement in the Facebook group awhile back, but it didn't even occur to me at the time that some of you aren't members of that group.**_

 _ **I appreciate all of your patience and understanding and I will update as soon as I can. Much love to you all!**_


	4. Chapter 4

Tara hated to see her parents leave, she was going to miss them so much. "Are you sure you can't stay a few more days?" She asked, leaning up against the driver's door of their car.

"Baby, you are going to be just fine," Grace hugged her daughter, "you have Sara here with you, all of SAMCRO looking out for you, and Jax." She pulled back winking at her daughter. "You can come visit anytime you want, your room will always be available and we'll randomly drop in a surprise visit." She kissed Tara's forehead.

"You can always come home," Andrew sighed, he hated leaving Tara here, she was his baby girl after all, "get a job back there."

"Or…you can move here." Tara flashed her smile up at him.

"Maybe one day." Drew ruffled her hair and kissed her cheek. "I love you baby."

"Love you too, daddy. Love you, momma."

"Love you more sweetie." Her mom blew her a kiss.

"Jax," Drew called out, "take care of my girl. If you hurt her, you'll deal with me." Drew gave Jax a hard stare. He worried about her getting mixed up with Jackson, but he also knew his girl could handle herself if she needed to.

"Andrew Knowles, leave that boy alone." Grace chuckled.

"You don't have anything to worry about, sir." Jax shook Drew's hand and pulled Tara against him.

"That's good. Let's keep it that way." He smiled, "See you later baby." Drew and Grace waved at the crowd before driving off the lot.

"I have a good feeling that they will be back here before too long." Gemma stated, pulling Tara in for a hug. She could see how sad Tara was at her parent's departure. That's why she was rooting for this to work with her son, Tara grew up in this life-she grew up with a strong sense of family bonds.

"I hope so. I miss them already." Tara sighed but shook the feeling off, this is what she signed up for. She knew what she was getting into when she accepted the job in another state. Her mom was right though at least she still had Sara, Jax, and her extended SAMCRO family.

"Come on, let's go shopping." Sara pulled Tara toward her car.

"You go ahead, I'm not really in the mood to shop." She really just wanted to spend some alone time with Jax, maybe naked, that would make her feel better.

"Ah come on, don't be a party pooper. Let's have a good girl time before your hectic Chief of Surgery schedule begins. Please," Sara pouted her lips out, "besides we have a lot of new things to discuss." She tilted her head toward Tommy.

"Fine," Tara agreed. She turned her attention to Jax, "we're going to go shopping for a bit, I'll see you later?" She meant for it to sound like a statement, a for sure it was going to happen, but it came out more as a question.

"You know it; I may be over at Op's so just call me when you get back." He kissed her and swatted her butt as she turned to walk away.

Sara jogged back up to her from telling Tommy goodbye, Tara noticed the way he looked at Sara, he was hooked. Poor kid, she hoped Sara was serious about him, and not just playing games until she decided to take Dillon back.

"So spill, what happened with Dillon?" Tara asked as they drove to Lodi to the nearest mall.

"He did what Dillon always does," Sara groaned, "got drunk, got loud, got mean when I didn't abide by his 'rules' and hit me, knocking me into the coffee table." She shrugged.

"Asshole." Tara growled.

"Yeah, well maybe my brother beat some sense into him." Sara smiled to herself, replaying the memory of Sean beating his ass.

"Well," Tara giggled, "that would require him to have a brain so I doubt it."

"True story." Sara laughed. She loved being back here with Tara, she was her person-her best friend soul mate.

"So you are completely done with him then?" Tara asked in a more serious tone, suddenly thinking about Tommy again. He's a good kid, she really didn't want to see him get hurt.

"Yes," Sara nodded, "we are done. 100 percent done. I'm ready to move on, be with someone who knows how to treat a girl." She blushed. Tara had a feeling that Sara was now thinking about Tommy too.

"Tommy's sweet," Tara winked, "I think if you give him an honest shot, you'll really like him."

"I think so too. So what about you and his brother, what was his name again?"

"Jax, what about us?" Tara bit her lip.

"Give me the details girl. What's the story? Are you dating or just fucking him?"

"How did you know we..." Tara's words trailed off when Sara interrupted with laughter.

"I didn't but now I do. Slut." Sara laughed.

"Shut your face." Tara giggled, her face was on fire. She wasn't really embarrassed, if there was anyone she could talk to or joke about this stuff with, it was Sara.

"Bad girl Tara." She laughed again.

"I learned from the best." Tara grinned.

"Damn straight." Sara agreed.

" _I miss you_." Tara smiled as she read the text from Jax.

"What's got you smiling like a Cheshire cat?" Sara questioned.

"Jax texted me that he misses me so I'm going to give him something to miss." Tara answered, grabbing some hot red and black lacy lingerie from the rack.

"Get it girl." Sara giggled.

Tara changed in the dressing room and snapped a picture of herself in her new attire and typed out, ' _how much'_ before sending the photo.

She changed back into her clothes, _"_ _ahh fuck please tell me you're buying that? Dying over here. You could tell me where you are and I can come fuck you in the dressing room, that's how much. So fuckin' gorgeous."_

She was pleased with his response, " _I might buy it."_

It didn't take long before her phone pinged again, _"_ _might hell, you ARE. Hurry home, please."_

She chuckled to herself, this was fun. She had him going crazy. She loved the idea that just a picture could get him so excited. She loved the idea that SHE got him so excited and he was passing up the opportunity from all of the nasty girls that hung around him.

 ** _A/N: Thanks for reading. Please review. I'll try to be better about updating more regularly. I'm sorry this update was so short, but I wanted to get something out to you since an update was requested._**


	5. Chapter 5

"Let's get some lunch." Sara requested after paying for their new outfits.

"I'm not really hungry." Tara shook her head, she was hungry, just not for food.

"Oh come on. You can go be with your guy later. I've been going crazy missing you. Don't leave a girl hanging." Sara pouted.

"Okay. Okay. Let's eat." Tara shook her head smiling at her friend.

"MMM MMM MMM. Damn. You girls are sexy as fuck. How about you come back to our place to party." Four guys surrounded them. "We promise to show you a good time. You won't be disappointed." The other one stated licking his lips.

"I doubt you nerds could show anyone a good time, besides our boyfriends have that covered." Sara rolled her eyes and tried pushing past them.

"Wait a minute now pretty girl." One grabbed her wrist. "Let go of me." Sara struggled against his hold.

"If you know what's good for you, you will back off…right now." Tara growled. This type of scene wasn't new to either one of them. They'd both dealt with their fair share of drunk handsy guys all through their teenage years.

"This one's feisty…I like it." The bigger one in the bunch backed Tara up against the brick wall outside of the diner. He stared at her, ran his fingers down her chest, groping her breast before falling to the ground when her knee connected with his most prized possession earning laughs from all of his drunken friends.

"Asshole." She spat shoving through the crowd pulling Sara along with her.

"Bitch." He shouted out in pain.

"I've been called worse." Tara called back before walking into the diner.

"You think they will come in here?" Sara asked. She wasn't as confident as Tara, she'd been hit enough lately by Dillon. She would never admit it out loud but guys made her nervous now.

"They might." Tara shrugged, "I doubt it. He's probably going to be pretty sore for a while."

"Probably." Sara agreed, "you nailed him. Are you going to tell Jax?"

"No, I don't need a boy handle my shit." She gave Sara a stern look, "you can't say anything either. Most guys would laugh it off, guys in _this life_ react differently. A guy harassing an old lady…or a girlfriend…or whatever could be a death sentence to some."

"Wow." Sara had been Tara's best friend for practically ever but she wasn't privy to some of the ways of the club. Tara never talked about it and the heavy stuff went on behind closed doors.

"Do you think some of those people who were watching from across the street will tell them? This is a small town after all." Sara questioned.

Tara thought about it, "it's possible I guess. I don't think anyone knows who I am just yet though so I doubt it."

"Have you told him about Wade?"

"No," Tara sighed, "we haven't really talked about anything serious. There's nothing to tell anyways."

"Do you think I should tell Tommy about Dillon?" Sara looked down at the table. She was ashamed of herself for letting it go that far. She should have been smart and left the first time he hit her but she always defended his actions.

"I wouldn't, not unless it becomes a necessity. So you like him? Tommy I mean?"

"I do. He's sweet, the polar opposite of Dillon." Sara smiled at the thought. It was nice to be able to hang out with someone she could be sure wasn't going to flip out and smack her for burning his dinner or something stupid.

Tara nodded.

"What about Jax? How do you think that's going to play out?"

Tara bit her lip, "I honestly have no idea. We're dating. That's a first for him. He's never dated anyone before. He's got a bad reputation for using girls for sex and then bailing. So I don't know if this is just a fling for him or what…I like him. I do know that."

Sara chuckled, "I just never pictured it."

"Pictured what?" Tara squinted her eyes in confusion.

"You…with a patched member…being an old lady."

"I'm not an old lady. We're just seeing how things go." Tara shrugged. She never pictured it either. She always said she would get away from the outlaw life. Now here she is-not being able to wait to get the notorious Prince of Charming in bed with her.

"I think you're on the fast track to being an old lady. We could be old ladies together." Sara giggled. "Sisters legally." Sara's wide smile at the thought warmed Tara's heart. She genuinely looked happy for the first time in a long time. Tara's fears of her breaking Tommy's heart were beginning to disappear.

"Whoa, slow down. We literally just met them. It's way too soon to be thinking about love…old ladies…or marriage." Tara laughed.

"No, it's too soon for them to think about it. We're girls. It's what we're supposed to think about." Sara disagreed.

"Well girl or not, I don't have the time to think about it. I have to worry about starting my new job." She wouldn't ever admit it this soon, but the thought of officially becoming Jax's old lady and getting the tattoo was appealing. She never dreamed the day would come that she would think becoming an old lady was anything more than being handcuffed to a guy and his club. She loved the club life and the sense of family but she wasn't sure if she could be tied down to it permanently.

"Yeah, I know…big time surgeon Tara Knowles. The girl who pushed the boundaries to achieve her dream. Have I mentioned how proud of you I am?" Sara gushed.

"Thank you. I'm pretty proud of you too." Tara winked.

"Proud of me? For what? I haven't done anything spectacular."

"Well, I'd say finally finding the courage to walk away from Dillon and the abuse you endured for so long is pretty great."

"Thanks buddy," Sara wiped a tear from her eye, "I never thought I'd be able to do it as much as I wanted to. Every time he hit me, I would make excuses for him or listen to his promise after promise that it was the last time knowing there would never be a last time until he killed me or I made it the last time."

Tara sighed, she knew he hit her but she hadn't known it had gotten that bad. "Well I must be a horrible friend for not helping you get away."

"No," Sara moved and sat next to Tara, "you are the only one who even tried to get me to leave him, besides my brother, all of our "friends" would just say ' _he's the best thing that ever happened to you'._ Yeah, because beating your girlfriend is so wonderful."

"They're all losers going nowhere fast." Tara seethed. She could just picture her old friends saying that to Sara.

"You got that right." Sara agreed. "C'mon let's go back to see what the boys are up to. I'm kind of anxious to see Tommy." She couldn't hide her blush.

Tara shook her head with an amused expression, it had been a long time since she had ever seen Sara this happy or giddy over a guy. It was refreshing.

 **Author's note: Thanks for reading. I wanted to give you a glimpse into Tara and Sara's friendship.**


	6. Chapter 6

"Looks like they're busy working, let's go sit over here and wait." Tara motioned toward the picnic table under a shade tree.

"Mind if I sit with you guys? I'm Opie's old lady, Donna. Sorry we haven't really gotten the chance to meet, I've been working crazy hours."

"I understand that; my life will revolve around the hospital next week." Tara answered. "I'm Tara, this is Sara."

"Your names rhyme…that's kind of cool." Donna smiled. She was at a loss for words, she didn't have many female friends, didn't know how to talk to them, but when she heard Jax was smitten over a girl she knew she had to become friends with the girl who won Jax Teller over.

"Sort of," Sara chuckled, "my first name is actually Josephine, after a grandmother that I've never even met. Then when I met Tara as practically babies we thought it was cool that our names sounded similar so I wanted to go by my middle and now I'm glad because I really don't care to much for my first name."

"It works." Donna replied.

"So, what kind of work do you do Donna?" Tara asked.

"I work in the childcare facility at Saint Thomas part time and then the majority of my time lately has been at the supermarket. They are understaffed so whenever I'm not working at the hospital, I'm at the market."

"If they are understaffed, maybe I can get on there. It would be cool to work with someone I know." Sara pondered out loud.

"Hell yeah! I can talk to the manager for you." Donna agreed. "It will be nice to have some help so I can actually spend some time with Opie."

"Cool. Maybe we can go tomorrow and talk to them? I was going to go look for work tomorrow anyways."

"Sounds good." Sara smiled happily. She was sure she made the right decision to follow Tara here. A new town with a fresh start, her best friend, a new boyfriend-maybe, they hadn't talked about exactly what they were yet-and a lot of really nice people. She felt more at home in Charming then she did in the town she grew up.

"You and Jax huh?" Donna needed the inside scoop on how she pinned down Teller.

"I guess so." Tara nodded. "We're still working things out, but he said he wants me to be his girlfriend, so I guess that's a good sign." She grinned. She couldn't contain her smiles when she thought about him.

"It's a very good sign. Jax doesn't do the girlfriend thing so to say he wants to with you…is damn near a miracle, but I'm happy for you guys. He needs someone to settle his ass down."

"What are you ladies talking about?" Jax, Opie, and Tommy sauntered over to the picnic table.

"You." Donna chuckled and stood up so Opie could sit down. She sat in his lap.

"What about me?" Jax asked, sliding his arm around Tara.

"You and her, actually." Sara answered.

"Yeah, the fact that you want me to be your girlfriend when normally you don't do the girlfriend thing." Tara chimed in gazing in his eyes.

"What can I say? You captivated me the moment I laid eyes on you." Jax whispered, completely wrapped up in Tara. He could barely think straight when she's so close to him.

"I think the feeling is mutual." She placed her forehead against his.

The two of them were completely unaware the entire lot was focused on them, especially the croweaters who were scowling at the picture perfect moment. Gemma watched from her office window, with a smile on her face. This was the girl she wanted for her son.

"Did you buy it?" Jax asked.

Tara nodded, "it's in the car."

Jax jumped up from the table pulling Tara with him, grabbed the bag out of the car, and took her into his room. His mouth was on hers before he even locked the door back. He lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist.

He placed her down gently and handed her the bag, "let me see how it looks." He swatted her ass as she headed toward the bathroom to change into the skimpy lingerie.

His mouth dropped open when she made her way back out, "like?" She grinned, she knew the answer but wanted to hear him say it. She kept her eyes on his, if she allowed herself the chance to stare at his now naked body she would be drooling like an idiot.

"Fuck Yes. I love it. You are gorgeous."

"Not so bad yourself Teller." She ran her fingers down his muscled chest and around his stomach to his back, scratching gently.

He groaned. His cock was throbbing painfully. He picked her up again, laying her down on the bed and sliding his fingers around the fabric and deep inside of her.

He slid his fingers out of her and licked her juices off of his fingers.

"You taste so good." He muttered before sliding her out of her new outfit and discarding it on the floor.

"I'm glad you like it." She panted.

He lifted her up and placed her down on his erection and guided her hips to a slow rhythm. He didn't want to take this fast. He wanted to take his time with her this time and feel every inch of her body.

She collapsed down onto him after they were both spent. He held her against him and rubbed her back.

"Hey shit head, put your dick away and help us finish this job." Opie pounded on the door.

"Yeah. Aight." Jax answered. "Asshole loves fucking with me." He muttered. He didn't want this moment to end any more than Tara did. He loved having her wrapped in his arms. Each moment he spent with her was making him more of a pussy but he was loving every minute of it.

"Go ahead, finish your work, and hurry back to me, sexy." Tara pinched his ass when he stood up.

"Definitely. You and me have a date tonight, in your bed, or that bed. A bed…whichever one you'd like."

"Sounds good to me." She grinned. Normally she probably would have wondered if he only wanted her for sex, but right now sex is all she can think about too so she sure as hell can't fault him for that. She was like a hormonal teenager again, but he made it feel so good and she just couldn't get enough. She also knew that this place was crawling with all of the sex he could possibly want…but yet he chose her every time…so that had to mean something.

Donna was in the office talking to Gemma and Sara was engaged in a make out session with Tommy, who didn't seem to care about getting back to work at all and neither of them cared about their handsy PDA being almost inappropriate but this was the club life, most of the time the guys would engage in various sexual activities right there in the open so a little kissing and groping was nothing.

Tara stood back in the distance taking in the scene in front of her. Her best friend finally happy with someone who wouldn't hurt her, her new sense of family within a new club-she knew any one of these guys would kill for her, they considered her one of their own-and her new boyfriend standing there in the garage shirtless and sexy as hell. He cared for her so much in such a short time in a way that Wade never did in all of the time they were dating. He took her breath away. She was the Chief of Pediatric Surgery at Saint Thomas. The only thing that this town lacked were her parents. They were the only thing missing from this picture perfect life. She could deal with their absence though. She hoped they would eventually move here but with Jax, Sara, and her new extended family by her side she knew she would be alright.


	7. Chapter 7

"Tara, I need to talk to you." Sara burst through Tara's office door at the hospital.

"What's wrong?" Tara questioned.

"I talked to Allison a little while ago." She paused.

"And…" Tara continued organizing her desk, "is she okay?"

"She said no one has seen or heard from Wade and Dillon in several days." Sara explained.

"Maybe they're in jail. It would be a good place for them." Tara smirked. It wouldn't be the first time they wound up in jail together.

"Dillon told Will they were coming here to pick me up and Wade was going to win you back."

"Why didn't you lead with that?" Tara sighed in frustration squeezing her eyes shut.

"Sorry," Sara shrugged, "just figured you'd want to know how I knew. What are we going to do? I don't want to see him. He said if I ever left him, he'd kill me."

"It's going to be fine," Tara assured her, "we will both be fine."

"How do you know?" Sara cried out. "I'm scared."

Tara pulled her friend in for a hug, "do you really think Tommy, Jax, or any of the other guys will let some loser ex-boyfriend hurt you?"

"They wouldn't let them hurt you, I'm nothing to them."

"You are with Tommy Teller and you are my best friend. YOU will be protected." Tara squeezed her once more before letting go and pulled out her phone dialing Jax, "Hey can you and Tommy meet us at the hospital?"

"They'll be here in a minute. They'll escort us home or to the clubhouse whichever he thinks is best. I promise you'll be safe."

Sara nodded but she didn't feel as sure as Tara.

"What's going on?" Jax asked when Tara unlocked her office door.

"There's some things we need to tell you to get you to understand." Tara stated. "To make a long story short, Sara came here to get away from a sadistic asshole. He hit her regularly and told her if she ever left him, he'd kill her. We got news that he's coming here to take her back."

"I'll kill the fucker." Tommy growled. Jax had never heard Tommy talk about killing someone and he honestly didn't think he could go through with it. He'd probably end of getting hurt if he tried. Tommy's too soft. If he didn't have the last name Teller, he probably wouldn't have even made it into the club.

"Do you think he really will come here?" Jax asked.

"Yes," Sara frowned, "he's crazy and he's not coming alone. Tara's ex is with him."

"Did he ever hurt you?" Jax's fist were clenched at his sides.

"Do you think my dad would let him live if he did?" Tara countered.

"He needs to know, Tara." Sara objected. "Keeping this secret is not helping anyone right now."

"Needs to know what? Tell me." Jax ordered.

Tara shot Sara an angry glare, "it was nothing."

"It was!" Sara protested, "he threw you down a flight of stairs, that's not nothing damn it."

"Tara?" Jax was staring at her waiting for her to explain.

"It was one time," Tara answered in a whisper, "I thought my birth control had failed. I took a pregnancy tests with a positive result. I didn't want a baby so soon especially not with someone who only cared about drinking or getting stoned. I decided to have an abortion. I went into a clinic to get information about my options. They performed an ultrasound that showed I wasn't pregnant…it was just a false positive. They said those happens sometimes. Someone saw me walking out of the clinic and told him. He was furious. I tried to tell him that I wasn't pregnant but he didn't believe me. He threw me down the flight of stairs and stomped on my stomach, screaming at me that I killed his baby. Sara and her boyfriend came; Dillon took Wade out for some beers to let him calm down. Sara and I packed my shit up, I moved back in with my parents. That was the end of it."

"Why didn't Andrew or the Devil's Tribe do something?" Tommy asked.

Jax's eyes were full of rage. He couldn't speak. He wanted to hit something…or someone.

"I told them that my feet got tangled in a sheet carrying the laundry down the stairs and I fell. My parents knew what an asshole Wade was, they knew about his drinking and drug problem and they knew that he would scream at me from time to time. I used that to my advantage, I told them that I had enough. I didn't want anything else to do with him and my dad made sure he knew to stay away from me."

"How many times did he hit you?" Tommy returned his focus back to Sara.

"More than I can count." Sara dropped her head in shame. "I wasn't as smart as her. I let it keep happening over and over."

"You walked away that's the most important thing." Tara stated, still staring at Jax.

"Let's get to the clubhouse and see if JT wants to do a lock down or how he wants to handle it." Jax stood up out of his trance.

"He's going to call my dad isn't he?" Tara dropped her head. She knew getting the club involved would include her father, she just wasn't expecting Sara to betray her vow to always keep it a secret. She couldn't fault her, she understood why she mentioned it. It could be vital information depending on what Wade has planned.

"It involves you so he has no choice." Jax placed his hand on the small of her back leading her outside.

She nodded. That was the answer she was expecting.

The club, Gemma, Andrew, and Grace had been filled in on the circumstances. JT didn't think a lock down was necessary since it wasn't a club wide threat but he did agree that the girls have 24-hour supervision. Grace, Andrew, and a few of the Devils Tribe charter were on their way to Charming.

"I'm sorry. I had to tell him." Sara apologized for the third time in an hour.

"It's cool. I understand." Tara stated staring straight ahead preparing herself for her dad's disappointment in her lying to him and keeping something like this a secret for so long.

"There's two guys fitting the description of the assholes outside saying they need their mustang looked at." Juice announced.

Jax and Tara stood up, and looked at the cameras, "that's them." Tara said.

"Stay in here. We will handle this." Jax ordered lighting a smoke and making his way outside with the Sons following behind.

"What can I help you boys with?" JT stepped forward.

"My piece of shit car is acting up. It keeps stalling. You're the only garage here in town so do you have time to take a look at it?" Dillon asked, his eyes scanning the lot for any sign of Sara.

"Sorry boys. We're all booked up. You're going to have to take it to the next town over." JT replied.

"We have time. It's not a problem. I don't think it'll make it anywhere else. So just look at it, let me know what's wrong…how much it'll cost, and we'll go from there."

The girls stood close enough to the door they could hear most of what was being said. "This isn't going to work. He knows I'm here. He won't leave." Sara rocked back and forth in fear.

"Shh." Tara comforted her, "look at how many guys are here ready to defend us. You have nothing to worry about. We can walk out there right now and they can't do anything without paying the price."

Sara contemplated her words and walked forward into Dillon's sight. If Tara was so sure she would be protected, then what's the point of hiding? "What do you want Dillon?" She looped her arm with Tommy's, a clear message to Dillon that she's moved on.

Tara shook her head at her friend's bold move but followed along and stood next to Jax who wrapped her protectively in his arm glaring in Wade's direction daring him to make a move.

"What's going on here baby?" Dillon questioned. "You got a new man…or boy I should say." He laughed at Tommy's size, "are you planning to replace him with me?"

Tommy lunged forward but JT grabbed him, "easy son."

Dillon and Wade bellowed at the exchange. It was clear to Tara, they were drunk. It was the only explanation for them being this stupid or suicidal was the best word.

"He's more of a man than you two losers will ever be." Sara defended her new boyfriend.

"If he's a man, I'm a chic." Wade smirked.

"That seems about right," Jax answered, a dangerous glare gleaming in his eyes, "a real man wouldn't throw his girlfriend down some stairs or lay hands or feet in your case on them. A real man would protect his girl from the little bitches who do shit like that. A real man will break someone's neck who tries to hurt his old lady." Jax crept forward with each statement. "Now do you want to see how much of a real man I am?"

The intensity and truth in Jax's words had Wade's smug smile faltering. Tara knew him, she could see the fear in his eyes. She knew he didn't have any idea what he was getting into when he made the trip here with Dillon. She assumed he thought because her dad's club was hours away she would be all alone and unprotected.

"Yo bro," Wade stepped back, "we should just go. This ain't worth it. These ho's ain't worth it."

He chose the wrong words, Jax brought his forehead down hard into his nose causing him to stagger backwards. "Ho's? The only ho's here I see is you and your little bitch boy over there." Jax punched him knocking him to the ground. "You see my friends over there," he grabbed him by his hair turning his head to look in the direction of Tig and Happy, "I may just let them show everyone the ho's you really are, we'll let them take turns running it up your bitch ass."

"We can do that shit…like a lot…no lube." Happy stepped forward, thrusting his hips out.

"My cock's been itchin for a little fun." Tig laughed. "I guess these pricks will do."

"No. No. No. Stop we'll go. We won't bother them anymore." Dillon stepped back away from Happy and Tig.

"Oh and one more thing," Tommy drew back and put all of his weight behind a punch just like Jax taught him when they were kids, catching Dillon not looking, "who's the bitch now? Bitch."

"If you come around these girls or this town again, we won't take it so easy on you next time." JT folded his arms. "Gem, call Drew and see if he wants us to hold them here for him to deal with further when he gets here."

"He does." Gemma replied hanging up the phone.

"Lock them in one of the rooms." JT ordered.

"You boys royally fucked up," Bobby pointed out, "not only did you fuck with member's girlfriends you chose to fuck with a daughter of the club. You boys might have just signed your own death warrant. You better pray Andrew Knowles has mercy."

"Shit. They need to be more worried about Jax. You know what a hot head he is, especially when it comes to that girl." JT added.

"I'll see you soon." Jax nodded at the two in captivity.

The Devil's Tribe pulled onto the lot a few hours later. "You should have told me!" Drew scolded his daughter.

"Baby why would you keep something like that from us?" Grace added.

"I don't know, just didn't want to be the reason you killed someone I guess." Tara shrugged.

"You should have told me the truth." Drew retorted.

"What I should have done isn't important. I made a mistake trying to cover it up, we all make mistakes. For the most part he's stayed away after the one incident. I don't think he deserves to die." Tara answered.

"I won't kill him, but I will make him-them-think twice before they come near you girls again. They will have a reminder every time they look in the mirror about what will happen if they choose to ignore our warnings. You want in on this son?" Drew turned to Jax.

"Damn right I do." Jax kissed Tara and followed Drew to issue their 'warning'."

Tara didn't know exactly what her dad had planned but she did know whatever it was would be extremely painful for them. They may not die…but she was certain they would wish they were dead after her dad and Jax finished with them.


	8. Chapter 8

All was quiet on the lot, much too quiet for Tara's liking. She had no clue what her dad, Jax, Tommy and the other guys were doing in there but she'd been around the club life long enough to know it wouldn't end well for the stupid boys.

"What do you think they're doing?" Sara rocked back and forth on her heels nervously. "Do you think they will hurt them too bad?"

"I think they will wish for death." Tara replied staring at the doors waiting for someone to emerge. "He promised he wouldn't kill them though."

"Drew did, Jax and Tommy didn't." She retorted.

"I think they're safe from death- for now-unless they are stupid enough to pull something like this again."

Sara nodded, unsure how Tara was so easy going and okay about whatever was happening in there. Just wondering made her skin crawl.

The doors flung open and they carried the guys out and put them in the back of the van. Tara trotted over and examined their appearance. They were unconscious-almost lifeless-but the rapid movement of their chests told her they were still alive. Wade's face had a slit from his ear to his chin, her dad wasn't kidding about him having a reminder every time he looked in the mirror. Aside from the new facial features, both boys were sporting black eyes, swollen lips and cheeks, and probably concussions.

"Didn't think you had it in you, kid." Jax punched Tommy in the arm admiring his little brother's artwork on Dillon. Tommy would always be just a kid to Jax so the Tommy having the strength to cause such damage to someone-even someone as pathetic as this prick-would be unusual to Jax. "I'm not a kid anymore, besides he messed with my girl." Tommy scowled at Jax before wrapping his arm around Sara, "I'll always protect her."

Tara watched the two of them. She knew Tommy was something special the moment she met him. He wasn't the boy for her but Sara on the other hand was a perfect match for him, as long as she didn't play her games. If she does, Tara will have to kick her ass. By looking at her snuggled into the crook of Tommy's arm, Tara could almost guarantee she didn't have anything to worry about. Her friend was falling…fast.

"Get them out of here," Drew ordered some of the Devil's Tribe guys, "take them back up to Nevada and warn them if they tell anyone what or who happened, we will find out about it and they will pay the ultimate price."

"Remind them if they mess with our girls again, we won't go so easy on them next time." Tommy called out.

"I think they understand that," Jax chuckled, "if they're foolish enough to come back around after this," he motioned toward the two lifeless bodies lying in the van, "then I'll be glad to show them the error of their ways."

The chill that Tara felt run down her spine from the brutal honesty of Jax's words turned her on, which shocked her more than his open willingness to kill someone who had hurt her. She had never been much for the club's violent ways, she understood the necessity for it at times but dealing with her father, Jax, or any of her extended club family wasn't a fate she'd wish on anyone.

Drew turned to his daughter, "don't you ever keep a secret like this from me again. You're tough, you can handle yourself I know, but what if something ever happened and you turned up missing? I would be so busy chasing the wrong leads instead of being able to locate you sooner if I don't know about the bad shit you got going on."

Tara nodded and leaned into kiss her dad's cheek, "you're right. I'm sorry." He had a point, the club's first thought would be a retaliation from a rival club. If she didn't tell at least someone about her problems, they would never know where to look. "I promise I will keep you updated on all my "bad shit," I guess it's a good thing, I'm a very likable person and don't have much drama besides what has already been handled."

Drew smirked, "love you big."

"Love you too, daddy." She would always be a daddy's girl. "You know you can always just move here, ya know…to help keep me safe from all of the "bad shit" I can get into." She liked the fact that his expression looked like he was considering it this time.

"Maybe soon, sweetpea," Drew kissed her forehead, "until then I'm counting on Jax and Samcro to keep an eye on you."

"No worries there, sir." Jax wrapped his arms around Tara's waist, "she will be well taken care of."

"Uh huh. Just be careful taking care of her, alright son?" Drew joked. He decided to let it go at that, his daughter's sexual escapades weren't something he wanted to discuss at all, but especially not on the Teller-Morrow lot.

"Yes, do be careful," Grace added, "we don't need any grandbabies quite yet."

"Mom!" Tara's face turned red.

"Just saying. I know how you kids are these days…fucking more than rabbits." Grace stated earning a laugh from everyone in ear shot.

"We will be careful Mrs. Knowles." Jax promised.

"Grace," She pointed her finger at him, "Mrs. Knowles makes me feel old."

"Got it." He smirked.

Tara hugged her parent's goodbye, sad to see them leaving again so soon after arriving. She knew they were only here to take care of Wade and Dillon, but she missed them already.

"You okay?" Tara turned to Sara who was still wrapped securely in Tommy's arms. "You're kind of pale."

"Yeah," she snuggled closer to Tommy, "I'm just kind of in a daze, I think. This sort of thing is all new to me."

"Babe, it had to be done." Tommy whispered. "If we didn't, there was no telling what they'd do to you girls."

"I know." Sara placed her hand on his chest, "I'm not mad at all. I'm kind of in awe, I think."

"About what?" Tommy questioned.

"That you care about me so much already that you'd do something like this…"

"A man shouldn't hurt a woman regardless but you're my woman now and I won't ever let anyone hurt you." He kissed her softly.

"Tellers love deep," Gemma stated patting Sara's back, "they hate deeper. You and Tara are our family now. We don't let anyone hurt our family."

"We're home now." Tara smiled at her friend and took Jax's hand in hers kissing his knuckles. She was used to the strong family bonds the club could bring growing up in the Devil's Tribe, now that family extended out to the MC.

"We are." Sara agreed, smiling up at Tommy.

"No more secrets." Jax whispered in Tara's ear. "If this is going to work, we have to be 100% honest with each other."

"I agree. I grew up in the club," she spun around standing face to face with him, wrapping her arms around his stomach, "I know there's a lot of club secrets, but I also know you can tell your old ladies those secrets…my dad did my mom. So I need to know everything too."

"Deal." He leaned down kissing her nose.

The two of them stood lost in each other's eyes. Everything around them disappeared-the music that was blasting, the chatter and laughter of the crowd around them, was gone. It was as if time stood still. All that remained was her and him.


End file.
